Friday, March 09, 2007

Google Books Goes Europe

Reuters reports that Germany's Bavarian State Library will join the Google Books Project; about one million of the library's 9-million book collection will be digitized. Most of those scanned will be in German, but a library spokesperson said that books in "Italian, French, Spanish, Latin and English" will also be included. Only items whose copyright has expired will be scanned.

Google Germany spokesman Steve Keuchel: "This is a very important step for us, particularly in view of the criticism that's been levelled at the project. And it's pleasing not just for us, but also for Google users, particularly in the German-speaking world, because the deal means that we'll be able to significantly raise the number of German books in the Google Book Search."

Other European libraries involved with the Project include the Bodleian at Oxford, Complutense University in Madrid and the National Library of Catalonia.

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About Me

News and commentary on book history, library culture, digital humanities, archives and related subjects. Written by Jeremy Dibbell, a bibliophile, haunter of used bookstores, and special collections librarian. Email: philobiblos@gmail.com.